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Reds, Stephen Piscotty Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Reds have agreed to a minor league contract with Stephen Piscotty, according to his transactions log at MLB.com. The veteran outfielder was released by the A’s last week. He’s headed to Triple-A Louisville.

Cincinnati is the third career organization for the 31-year-old Piscotty. A Cardinals draftee, he spent the first three seasons of his big league career in St. Louis. Piscotty was a well above-average hitter for the first couple years of that stretch, earning a long-term contract extension heading into the 2017 campaign. He had his first below-average season that year, though. After the season, the Cardinals dealt the Bay Area native to the A’s — a move partly motivated by a desire to allow Piscotty to be closer to home while his mother battled ALS.

During his first season in green and gold, Piscotty posted arguably the best season of his career. He hit a personal-high 27 home runs and put up a .267/.331/.491 showing across 605 plate appearances. At age 27, he looked to have gotten back on track offensively, but he’s seen a marked dip in performance over the past four years. Going back to the start of 2019, Piscotty owns a .229/.287/.378 line in just shy of 900 plate appearances. He’s hitting .190/.252/.341 with a 34.5% strikeout rate over 42 games this year.

Those struggles led the A’s to move on from Piscotty last week. Oakland will remain on the hook for the rest of this season’s $7.25MM salary, and they’ll also have to pay a $1MM buyout on a 2023 club option. Cincinnati will only owe Piscotty the prorated portion of the $700K league minimum (which would be subtracted from the A’s obligations) should Piscotty play his way back to Great American Ball Park.

There’s no financial downside for the Reds in adding some extra outfield depth, as they’ve been platooning in both corners of late. The lefty-hitting TJ Friedl and Jake Fraley have gotten the stronger side of that arrangement, while Aristides Aquino and Stuart Fairchild are on hand as righty options. Aquino is hitting only .176/.236/.235 in 55 plate appearances this month, so Piscotty could be an option to supplant him in relatively short order if he gets on track with Louisville.

Padres Promote Jose Castillo

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The Padres announced this evening that reliever José Castillo has been called up from Triple-A El Paso. Starter Yu Darvish is going on paternity leave in a corresponding transaction. While the club hadn’t made an announcement at the time, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reported last week that San Diego had added Castillo to the 40-man roster to keep him from opting out of his minor league contract.

Now that he’s back in the big leagues, the southpaw is nearing his first MLB appearance in three years. Castillo broke in with the Friars in 2018 and immediately impressed. Over 38 1/3 frames as a rookie, he worked to a 3.29 ERA with an elite 34.7% strikeout rate and an average 8% walk percentage. Castillo’s fastball sat in the 95 MPH range, and he held opposing left-handers to a pitiful .133/.220/.133 line in 50 plate appearances.

Castillo looked like a long-term bullpen piece, but his career has been thrown off track by a brutal series of injuries. He missed a good chunk of the 2019 campaign after suffering a flexor strain in his forearm. Castillo returned, made one appearance, then torn a ligament in his throwing hand. That ended his season, but it was far from the end of his injury troubles. The Venezuela native suffered a teres major strain in his shoulder in July 2020 and spent the entire shortened season on the IL. He tried to return last year, but he blew out in Spring Training and underwent Tommy John surgery in March.

In light of all the injuries, San Diego outrighted Castillo off the 40-man roster last offseason. They brought him back on a non-roster deal to give him another chance at getting back on track. Castillo finally returned to health in early May and reported to El Paso, and he’s picked up right where he’d left off in 2018 from a performance standpoint. Over 34 2/3 Triple-A frames, he owns a 2.08 ERA with a 32.6% strikeout rate, although his walk percentage has jumped to a somewhat alarming 10.1% clip. The free passes have shown up in a .359 on-base percentage allowed to lefty batters this season, but same-handed hitters are hitting only .227 and have collected a lone extra-base hit (a double) in 44 at-bats against him in Triple-A.

Castillo is still only 26 years old, and his upper minors dominance makes him an intriguing addition to the Friars bullpen for the stretch run. It’s certainly not out of the question he reestablishes himself as a key late-game option for manager Bob Melvin. Castillo collected big league service from 2019-21 while on the major league injured list, but he’s still set to finish this season with between three and four years of service time. He’ll be arbitration-eligible through at least 2025 as a result, making him a potential long-term option for San Diego if he again handles big league hitters. Regardless of how well he fares moving forward, Castillo can take no small amount of pride in working his way back to the highest level after such a horrific stretch of injury luck.

Twins Place Byron Buxton On Injured List

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The Twins announced they’ve placed center fielder Byron Buxton on the 10-day injured list due to a low-grade right hip strain. Catcher/infielder Caleb Hamilton was recalled from Triple-A St. Paul to take his spot on the active roster. The club also confirmed the previously-reported selection of righty Aaron Sanchez to start tonight’s ballgame against the Astros, with lefty Devin Smeltzer optioned to St. Paul. Corner outfielder Alex Kirilloff, who is out for the season after undergoing wrist surgery this month, was transferred to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man roster spot for Sanchez.

Buxton left last night’s contest with soreness in the hip, and manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters after the game that the issue had nagged at the star outfielder for much of the season (via Aaron Gleeman of the Athletic). The club announced he’d head for an MRI today. Darren Wolfson of SKOR North reports that the MRI didn’t reveal any serious issues, seemingly backed up by the team’s specification of a “low-grade” strain. It’ll nevertheless cost Buxton at least a week and a half of action.

It’s the second consecutive season in which Buxton has landed on the IL due to a right hip strain. His previous hip injury, suffered while running the bases, cost him nearly six weeks between May and June 2021. There’s no indication this issue is expected to be that severe — it seems unlikely given the generally optimistic tenor of the club’s prognosis — but even a couple weeks without the first-time All-Star will be a tough blow for a Minnesota team that is two games back of the Guardians in the AL Central and three games out of the American League’s final Wild Card spot.

In addition to the hip discomfort that has apparently plagued Buxton on and off all season, the club has been cautious with his workload as he nursed some soreness in his right knee. Being more judicious with his playing time had seemingly helped Buxton avoid an IL stint for the knee concerns, but he’ll land on the shelf for the first time all season with the hip issue. He’s spent some time on the IL in every year since 2017, but he’s continued to electrify when physically able to take the field. Buxton earned the first All-Star nod of his career this summer, and he’s blasted 28 home runs in 92 games. He’s hitting just .224 with a .306 on-base percentage, but the combination of his prodigious power and otherworldly center field defense has made him one of the game’s top outfielders.

Dodgers Re-Sign Tony Wolters To Minor League Deal

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The Dodgers are in agreement with backstop Tony Wolters on a new minor league contract, according to an announcement from Triple-A communications director Alex Freedman (Twitter link). He’ll return to their top affiliate in Oklahoma City, where he’s spent virtually all of the 2022 season.

Wolters, 30, originally signed a minor league deal with L.A. last summer. He opened the year in Triple-A and has appeared in 50 games there. Across 193 plate appearances, the lefty-hitting catcher posted a .216/.311/.269 line. He didn’t connect on a home run and struck out at an elevated 26.4% rate, although he did draw free passes at a quality 11.4% clip.

Two weeks back, Wolters made his team debut at the big league level. Selected onto the roster when regular backup Austin Barnes was away from the team to tend to a family matter, Wolters spent a weekend as the #2 behind Will Smith. That always looked like a temporary arrangement until Barnes returned to reassume his customary role, and the Dodgers designated Wolters for assignment and released him a few days later. It’s not uncommon for veterans of his ilk to go unclaimed on waivers after brief stints as a depth option in the majors, then to return to the organization on a new minor league arrangement.

Wolters’ tepid offensive output in Triple-A is in line with his body of work at the big league level. He’s never been an impactful hitter, compiling a career .235/.321/.314 line over parts of seven MLB seasons (the bulk of which came with the division-rival Rockies). He’s a highly-rated defender, however, having checked in 24 runs better average in just shy of 3000 MLB innings behind the dish, in the estimation of Defensive Runs Saved. Wolters consistently posts strong pitch framing marks and has thrown out an above-average 30.5% of attempted base-stealers in the majors. That defensive prowess makes him a good fit for the upper level depth role to which he’ll return with Los Angeles.

Rays Designate Tommy Romero, Kevin Herget For Assignment

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The Rays announced Tuesday that right-handers Tommy Romero and Kevin Herget have been designated for assignment, thus clearing space on the 40-man roster for right-hander JT Chargois and lefty Brendan McKay to be reinstated from the 60-day injured list. McKay has been optioned to Triple-A Durham, while Chargois will step directly into the big league bullpen. Both Romero and Herget will be placed on waivers within the week, as neither can be traded now that the Aug. 2 deadline has passed.

Romero, 25, figures to be more appealing to other organizations than your typical DFA, given his relative youth, full slate of remaining minor league options and strong performance in Triple-A to this point in the season. Through 66 2/3 innings in Durham thus far, he’s pitched to a 3.51 ERA with a 20.9% strikeout rate, 9% walk rate and 37.7% ground-ball rate. That walk rate is a bit of an abnormality, as Romero turned in lower walk rates in recent years and was credited with plus-plus command in Baseball America’s most recent scouting report, wherein they pointed out that Romero posted one of the highest strike rates in the minors last year (68.8%).

Earlier in the season, Romero was working out of the rotation in Durham, and he got the ball to “start” one game with the big league club as well (albeit as an opener). More recently, the Rays have been deploying Romero in short-relief stints down in Triple-A, perhaps taking a look at him in that role for a late-season add to the bullpen. The progression of other arms on the injured list, however, has squeezed him out of the mix for the time being, even in spite of excellent numbers since sliding to the bullpen (0.59 ERA, 18-to-3 K/BB ratio in 15 1/3 innings).

A former 15th-round pick of the Mariners (2017), Romero landed in the Rays organization by way of the 2018 Denard Span/Alex Colome trade between Tampa Bay and Seattle. He’s never ranked among the Rays’ very top tier of prospects, but Baseball America tabbed him 22nd among Tampa farmhands just a few weeks ago when updating their ranking of the Rays’ system. Every team is going to have its own evaluation of Romero, of course, but it’d be somewhat of a surprise if another team didn’t claim him — particularly with so many non-contenders in need of cost-controlled arms.

It’s unfortunate, to say the least, that Herget didn’t get into a game during his brief time with the big league squad. Selected to the roster on Aug. 19, the 31-year-old, former 39th-round pick’s ascent to the Majors after a nine-year minor league grind was a feel-good story for any baseball fan, regardless of where one’s allegiance may lie. Herget surely relishes the mere call to the big leagues, the few days of service time and the few days of Major League pay he’ll receive, but it’d have been a thrill for both him and for fans to see him get at least an inning in the show.

It’s possible, of course, that he may yet receive that opportunity. Herget’s promotion to the Majors was well earned based on his Triple-A performance this season. In 80 1/3 innings, he’d logged a 2.45 ERA with a 25.2% strikeout rate, a minuscule 3.4% walk rate and a 34.4% ground-ball rate. A 31-year-old journeyman of this nature isn’t typically claimed off waivers, but perhaps a team in need of some immediate rotation depth will be heartened by those gaudy results in Durham and speculate on a more-or-less free look. Failing that, he’ll head back to Durham and continue the grind, hoping for another shot at the Majors that includes an actual appearance on the bump.

Red Sox Place Nathan Eovaldi, Eric Hosmer On Injured List

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The Red Sox have placed right-hander Nathan Eovaldi and first baseman Eric Hosmer on the injured list, with Eovaldi heading to the 15-day IL (retroactive to August 19) and Hosmer to the 10-day IL (retro August 21).  Right-hander Josh Winckowski and first baseman Franchy Cordero were called up from Triple-A in corresponding moves, and Winckowski will start tonight’s game against the Blue Jays.

Eovaldi has been bothered by soreness in his neck and right shoulder, and an IL placement isn’t surprising given that he’d already been scratched from a start against the Pirates last Thursday and tonight’s start against Toronto.  Officially, Eovaldi is now on the 15-day IL due to right shoulder inflammation, and he also missed a month due to back inflammation earlier this season.

Over the weekend, Eovaldi told reporters that his soreness was improving and that he hoped to avoid another IL trip altogether.  This at least gives some hope that Eovaldi can return when first eligible, though he’ll now be out of action until September, leaving the Red Sox short a major arm at the front of their rotation.

Multiple injuries within the rotation allowed Winckowski to make 12 starts and pitch 60 2/3 innings in his first Major League season.  The righty has only a 5.19 ERA, as his grounder-heavy, low-strikeout approach hasn’t yet found much consistent success against MLB batters.

Hosmer has been sidelined due to lower back inflammation.  Since being acquired from the Padres at the trade deadline, Hosmer has hit .225/.311/.300 in his first 45 plate appearances with Boston, continuing the prolonged slump that has lasted for the veteran first baseman since he enjoyed a huge April.  Cordero and Bobby Dalbec figure to get most of the first base time in Hosmer’s absence, with the versatile Christian Arroyo also perhaps factoring into the mix.

One name not yet involved is Triston Casas, as the Red Sox continued to hold off giving the top prospect his first taste of big league action.  His development was slowed by a high ankle sprain that cost him two months of the season, but Casas has hit a solid (if not dominant) .258/.367/.458 over 270 PA with Triple-A Worcester.  It seems likely that Casas will make his MLB debut before the season is out, though the question is when exactly the Sox will decide to take their first look at the 22-year-old.

Giants Claim Jonathan Bermudez

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The Giants claimed left-hander Jonathan Bermudez off waivers from the Astros.  Houston designated Bermudez for assignment this past weekend. To clear a 40-man roster spot, San Francisco recalled reliever Gregory Santos and placed him on the major league 60-day injured list, likely ending his season.

The 26-year-old Bermudez is changing organizations for the first time in his career, as he was a 23rd-round draft pick for the Astros back in 2018.  He pitched in both 2019 and 2021, in the latter season returning from the 2020 layoff year to post a 3.24 ERA over 111 combined innings with the Astros’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates.

Between Bermudez’s impressive strikeout and walk totals, it seemed as though Houston was developing another homegrown gem, yet the 2022 season has been a grind for the left-hander.  Bermudez has an 8.96 ERA over 67 1/3 innings at Triple-A, with an increased walk rate and a big dropoff in his missed bats — Bermudez has only a 20% strikeout rate this season, down from 31% in 2021.  A hip injury could be a contributing factor, as Bermudez missed a month of action and struggled both before and after his absence.

The Astros put Bermudez on their 40-man roster during the offseason, but his lack of production in 2022 made him an expendable piece.  The Giants are one of baseball’s most aggressive teams on the waiver wire, so it isn’t surprising that they’ve moved to add a younger pitcher who showed a lot of promise as recently as last season.  Whether due to a healthier hip or perhaps just with a change of scenery, Bermudez might well be able to turn things around in San Francisco, given how the Giants have been successful at revitalizing several struggling pitchers.

Cardinals Re-Sign T.J. McFarland

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After releasing T.J. McFarland last week, the Cardinals announced that the veteran left-hander has been re-signed to a minor league deal.  McFarland will report to the Cardinals’ Triple-A affiliate in Memphis.

Now in his second season with the Cards, McFarland pitched well in 2021 but has struggled to a 6.61 ERA over 32 2/3 frames this season.  Low-strikeout pitchers who heavily rely on ground balls are perhaps more prone to big swings in performance, and in McFarland’s case, an increase in hard contact, a jump in BABIP (from .261 in 2021 to .333 this year), and a decrease in grounder rate (53% this season, 63.7% in 2021) have all combined to ruin McFarland’s performance.  His strand rate is also an abnormally low 60.4%, and his walk rate is also up from last season.

McFarland’s sinker (his primary pitch) is the best illustration of how his performance has tended to vary over his 10 MLB seasons.  When the southpaw had a 2.00 ERA over 72 innings with the Diamondbacks in 2018, McFarland’s sinker was one of the most effective pitches in all of baseball, and he also had great success with the pitch in 2021.  When the sinker isn’t only an average or below-average pitch, however, batters have feasted.

Retaining McFarland on a minors contract is a low-risk move for the Cardinals, as some time in Triple-A could help the 33-year-old get back on track.  St. Louis has plenty of other left-handed options in their bullpen for the stretch run and potentially into the playoffs, but a McFarland who can rediscover his 2021 form would give the Cardinals another nice depth option.

Cubs Select Nicholas Padilla

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The Cubs have selected the contract of right-hander Nicholas Padilla from Triple-A Iowa and appointed him as the 27th man for today’s doubleheader, per a club announcement. Jason Heyward was moved from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day injured list in a corresponding 40-man move. Chicago also formally announced its previously reported selection of righty Javier Assad and optioned righty Kervin Castro to Iowa. Chicago’s 40-man roster is now at capacity.

Padilla, 25, was selected by the Cubs out of the Rays organization in the minor league phase of the 2020 Rule 5 Draft. He’s never ranked among the top prospects in either organization but has set himself up for this call to the big leagues with a strong showing across three minor league levels in 2022.

In 43 innings between High-A, Double-A and Triple-A, Padilla has logged a collective 2.30 ERA and fanned 31.5% of his opponents along the way. His 13.8% walk rate, four hit batters (2.2%) and seven wild pitches highlight some command issues that have plagued him dating back to 2019. Padilla’s hefty 55.5% ground-ball rate this season has helped him to mitigate the damage from those free passes, however, and he’s yet to allow a home run on the year. Through 232 career minor league innings, he’s yielded just nine home runs (0.35 HR/9).

Heyward’s move to the 60-day injured list was a pure formality. The Cubs already announced that he wouldn’t return this season, and president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer revealed earlier this month that the Cubs plan to release Heyward at the end of the season.

Dodgers Sign Max Muncy To One-Year Extension

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The Dodgers and infielder Max Muncy have agreed to a contract extension, according to an announcement from the team. Under the previous extension he signed with the Dodgers, they had a $13MM club option for his services in 2023. That will now become guaranteed at $13.5MM, with the Dodgers now holding a $10MM club option for 2024, plus incentives. Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports that there’s no buyout on the 2024 option.

Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic (Twitter link) provides a breakdown of the escalators on Muncy’s option, which are based on his plate appearance tally in 2023. The option price would increase by $250K apiece for reaching 50, 250, 300 and 350 plate appearances next season, followed by an additional $500K at 400 and 450 plate appearances and an extra $1MM at each of 500 and 550 PA.

This extension is a bit of an early birthday present for Muncy, as he will turn 32 years old on Thursday. The lefty slugger was a late bloomer by major league baseball standards, having his breakout season in 2018 at the age of 27. That year, he hit 35 home runs and slashed .263/.391/.582 for a wRC+ of 162, indicating his offense was 62% better than league average.  In 2019, he proved that it was no fluke, hitting 35 homers again and slashing .251/.374/.515 for a wRC+ of 133. He also provided defensive versatility in that time, moving between first, second and third base.

After those two strong seasons, Muncy finally reached arbitration for the first time in his career, at the age of 29. He and the club didn’t come to an agreement, with the club filing for $4MM while Muncy’s camp submitted a $4.675MM figure. Before the hearing took place, the two sides agreed to a longer-term pact, running through 2022 with the option for 2023. Since Muncy was on pace to reach free agency after 2022, that extension effectively relinquished one year of free agency while allowing him to guarantee himself $26MM in future earnings, and potentially more.

Max Muncy | Richard Mackson-USA TODAY SportsMuncy slumped a bit during the shortened 2020 campaign but was excellent in the postseason, helping the Dodgers win their first World Series title since 1988. Last year, he got back to the pace he established in 2018 and 2019, as he hit 36 home runs and produced a batting line of .249/.368/.527, wRC+ of 140. Unfortunately, he injured his arm in a collision at the end of the season, an injury which prohibited him from participating in last year’s postseason.

That injury has seemingly lingered into 2022, as Muncy spent time on the injured list due to left elbow inflammation and struggled over the early parts of the season. However, the good version of Muncy has been roaring back recently. Through the end of July, he was hitting .161/.310/.303 for a wRC+ of 82. Since the calendar flipped to August, though, he’s hit seven home runs and slashed .328/.409/.776, increasing his wRC+ for the season to 105.

That August line is still a small sample of just 66 plate appearances, but the Dodgers evidently have enough faith in Muncy that they are willing to re-up with him for one more year. If that show of faith pays off, they will be rewarded by having the ability to keep Muncy around for yet another season. It also helps reduce a bit of uncertainty in the club’s infield picture. The Dodgers held club options over both Muncy and Justin Turner, while Trea Turner is slated to become a free agent in a few months’ time. While it was possible to envision a scenario where all three ended up in new uniforms next year, now the club knows that it at least can count on Muncy to take a spot somewhere on the diamond. There’s also uncertainty in the outfield, with Joey Gallo heading into free agency and Cody Bellinger a potential non-tender candidate. With players like Muncy, Chris Taylor, Gavin Lux and others bringing that multi-positional skillset, they’re in a good position to navigate their options in the offseason.

For Muncy’s part, he can finish the season and go into the playoffs with the peace of mind of having his 2023 salary locked in with a slight raise. The details of the incentives aren’t yet known, but that potentially provides him a chance to secure some more earnings as well.

Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic was among those to report the extension before the official announcement.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

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